Nikon Monarch 7 (8x42) vs Maven C1 (8x42) (1 Viewer)

[leroypenner]

Hello from Canada! I am brand new to this forum and have narrowed my binocular choices down to the Nikon Monarch 7 and the Maven C1 (both 8x42). I had a chance to look through the monarch 7 (10x42) at Cabelas, and was blown away by it's brightness and clarity. I have not seen the Maven C1, but am impressed by online reviews. I favour the FOV of the monarch, although quality of glass is of paramount importance. Any thoughts or advice?

 

[Andy Bright]

Hi and welcome to birdforum. I have moved your thread to a more appropriate section on birdforum dedicated to binoculars.
Best regards,
Andy

 

[ClarkWGriswold]

Hi Leroy and welcome to BirdForum. Good luck with your purchase.

Rich

 

[[email protected]]

Hello from Canada! I am brand new to this forum and have narrowed my binocular choices down to the Nikon Monarch 7 and the Maven C1 (both 8x42). I had a chance to look through the monarch 7 (10x42) at Cabelas, and was blown away by it's brightness and clarity. I have not seen the Maven C1, but am impressed by online reviews. I favour the FOV of the monarch, although quality of glass is of paramount importance. Any thoughts or advice?

I would take the Nikon Monarch 7 8x42 over the Maven C1 8x42 any day of the week and twice on Sunday. The Maven's 341 foot FOV is going to be a narrow key hole compared to the Nikon's 420 foot FOV. Quality of glass is going to be about the same. The Nikon Monarch 7 is a best buy at your price point.

 

[leroypenner]

I would take the Nikon Monarch 7 8x42 over the Maven C1 8x42 any day of the week and twice on Sunday. The Maven's 341 foot FOV is going to be a narrow key hole compared to the Nikon's 420 foot FOV. Quality of glass is going to be about the same. The Nikon Monarch 7 is a best buy at your price point.

Thanks for your observation. There is a great sale on Monarch 7's happening here right now. I am steering in that direction. I need to decide between 8x42 and 10x42. Here on the prairies the 10's certainly have their merit when considering wide open spaces, although most of my viewing will likely be on small birds flitting around at close range.

 

[justabirdwatcher]

I would take the Nikon Monarch 7 8x42 over the Maven C1 8x42 any day of the week and twice on Sunday. The Maven's 341 foot FOV is going to be a narrow key hole compared to the Nikon's 420 foot FOV. Quality of glass is going to be about the same. The Nikon Monarch 7 is a best buy at your price point.

I agree. And I've owned both.

The Monarch 7's continue to be a benchmark binocular IMO. C1's have really, really good glass but fall short in other areas as denco mentioned - giving the viewer the "toilet paper tube" feel when looking through them. I also had issues with the eye cups holding their position in the field. That drove me nuts. I probably could have lived with the narrow FOV because the optics were so good, but those eyecups! grrrr.

Get the Monarch 7's. They are as much binocular as 99.9% of us will ever need.

As for the 10's vs. 8's, unless you're routinely glassing long distances, get the 8's. The light gathering and wider field of view will more than make up for the 2x magnification difference.

 

[leroypenner]

Thanks for your reply! I've ordered the Monarch 7 (8x42) based on the above observations and the fact that they have a handsome sale price. I do own a pair of compact Nikon 7x21 bins bought back in the late 70's. They had great clarity and brilliance, and I enjoyed them until I started wearing glasses. They have little to no eye relief. Now it's on to something more upscale and better.

 

[[email protected]]

Thanks for your reply! I've ordered the Monarch 7 (8x42) based on the above observations and the fact that they have a handsome sale price. I do own a pair of compact Nikon 7x21 bins bought back in the late 70's. They had great clarity and brilliance, and I enjoyed them until I started wearing glasses. They have little to no eye relief. Now it's on to something more upscale and better.

Good choice.